Title

Associations between Toxoplasma gondii infection and steroid hormone levels in spotted hyenas

Authors

Zachary M. Laubach, University of Colorado Boulder, Michigan State University, Mara Hyena Project
Eben Gering, Nova Southeastern UniversityFollow
Erik Yang, Nova Southeastern University
Tracy M. Montgomery, Mara Hyena Project, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior
Thomas Getty, Michigan State University
Kay E. Holekamp, Michigan State University, Mara Hyena Project

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-2022

Publication Title

International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife

Keywords

Toxoplasma gondii, Crocuta crocuta, Spotted hyena, Testosterone, Cortisol, Steroid hormones

ISSN

2213-2244

Volume

17

First Page

53

Last Page

59

Abstract

Toxoplasma gondii is a common parasite that infects warm-blooded animals and influences host physiology. T. gondii is known to target the host's central nervous system, affecting circulating levels of steroid hormones, fear-related behaviors, and health, although these effects appear to vary among host taxa. Here, we investigated the relationship between T. gondii infection and levels of plasma testosterone and cortisol within a wild population of spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta, n = 109). In our analyses, we accounted for age and sex via stratified regression analyses. We detected a negative association between circulating plasma testosterone and T. gondii infection among female cubs and subadults as well as adult male hyenas. We found no associations between T. gondii infection and cortisol in any age class or sex group of hyenas. Our work adds to a growing body of literature by characterizing the relationship between T. gondii infection and physiology in a novel host in its natural habitat. In a broader context, our findings indicate that responses to infection vary with characteristics of the host and point to a clear need for additional studies and priorities for future work that include diverse taxa and ecological settings.

Comments

[Graphical Abstract]

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

NSUWorks Citation

Laubach, Zachary M.; Eben Gering; Erik Yang; Tracy M. Montgomery; Thomas Getty; and Kay E. Holekamp. 2022. "Associations between Toxoplasma gondii infection and steroid hormone levels in spotted hyenas." International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife 17, (): 53-59. doi:10.1016/j.ijppaw.2021.11.007.

ORCID ID

0000-0002-1270-6727

ResearcherID

J-8619-2012

DOI

10.1016/j.ijppaw.2021.11.007